Show ContentsCattle History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The Anglo-Saxon name Cattle comes from Chetel, an Old Norse and Old English given name. "The Welsh Annals (Annales Cambriae, Mon. Hist. Brit.) mention a Catell, king of Powys, in A.D. 808, and other eminent personages of the same Christian name. Cattal is, however, the name of a township in the West Riding of Yorkshire. " [1]

Early Origins of the Cattle family

The surname Cattle was first found in Norfolk, where Chetel Frieday, a freeman was listed in 1087. [2] Early records were more often than not of the name as a forename as almost two hundred years later, the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 list Cattle Bagge in Cambridgeshire. [3] The same rolls include Hervey Catel in Norfolk and Geoffrey Cattel in Huntingdonshire. [4]

Later in Yorkshire, the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 include: Thomas Chetill; and Johannes Chetel. [3]

Again in Yorkshire, we found John Cattle in 1653, John Cattell in 1683, and John Cattall in 1707, all listed as Freemen of York. [4]

"The name of Cattell is now well established around Birmingham: it is also found in the contiguous county of Oxford. Six hundred years ago it occurred as Catel and Katel in Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire, Hunts, Norfolk, and Lincolnshire." [5]

Early History of the Cattle family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Cattle research. Another 237 words (17 lines of text) covering the years 1275, 1279, 1500, 1530, 1561, 1653, 1683, 1707, 1773, 1780, 1781, 1787, 1790, 1792, 1802, 1810 and 1814 are included under the topic Early Cattle History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Cattle Spelling Variations

Before the last few hundred years, the English language had no fast system of spelling rules. For that reason, spelling variations are commonly found in early Anglo-Saxon surnames. Over the years, many variations of the name Cattle were recorded, including Cattell, Cattle, Catel, Cattall, Catell, Cattelle and many more.

Early Notables of the Cattle family

Notables of this surname at this time include: Geoffrey Catel, a prominent 13th century landholder in Huntingdonshire.Back in France, where some of the family remained, Charles Simon Catel, born June 1773 at l'Aigle (Orne); began his studies very early under Sacchini, Gobert, and Gossec, in the 'Ecole royale de chant et de déclamation,' at Paris. In 1787 he was made accompanist and 'professeur-adjoint' of the School, and in 1790 accompanist at the Opera. The same year he became chief, conjointly with Gossec, of the band of the Garde Nationale, for which he wrote a vast quantity of military music, which was...
Another 106 words (8 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Cattle Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


United States Cattle migration to the United States +

To escape oppression and starvation at that time, many English families left for the "open frontiers" of the New World with all its perceived opportunities. In droves people migrated to the many British colonies, those in North America in particular, paying high rates for passages in cramped, unsafe ships. Although many of the settlers did not make the long passage alive, those who did see the shores of North America perceived great opportunities before them. Many of the families that came from England went on to make essential contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Research into various historical records revealed some of first members of the Cattle family emigrate to North America:

Cattle Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • Thomas Cattle who arrived in Virginia in 1635
Cattle Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
  • Gertrude Cattle, aged 49, who landed in America from Lincoln, in 1904
  • Charlotte Cattle, aged 50, who immigrated to the United States from Somerset, in 1905
  • Blanche E. Cattle, who settled in America, in 1908
  • William F. Cattle, aged 26, who immigrated to the United States from Blackpool, England, in 1909
  • H. H. Cattle, who immigrated to America from Bootle, in 1919
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Australia Cattle migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Cattle Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • Miss Mary Cattle, (b. 1816), aged 20, English house maid who was convicted in London, England for 7 years for stealing, transported aboard the "Elizabeth" on 20th June 1836, arriving in New South Wales, Australia, 1 child on board with her [6]
  • Mr. Cattle, (b. 1835), aged 1 year 4 months, English settler traveling with convict mother Miss Mary Cattle, transported aboard the "Elizabeth" on 20th June 1836, arriving in New South Wales, Australia [6]

Contemporary Notables of the name Cattle (post 1700) +

  • Howard Cattle (1904-1992), American politician, Mayor of Chino, California, 1956-59 [7]


  1. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
  2. Rye, Walter, A History of Norfolk. London: Elliot Stock, 62, Paternoster Row, 1885. Print
  3. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
  4. Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
  5. Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
  6. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 11th March 2022). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/elizabeth
  7. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 23) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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